Unclipped Wings
by ProjectSSSS123
Summary: Set within the Shadow of Israphel universe (but barely mentioning it until later...), follow the footsteps of a boy, who, "blessed" with a power he has no knowledge of, must make decisions that will affect his life for the best...or the worst. Will he be forced to kill or forced to save? It's up to him to find the true meaning of his power...and his shady background. -Cover soon.-
1. Chapter 1: Pilot (Literally)

_**Welcome to my first attempt at a Minecraft FanFiction. Before I continue, note that this will be in the Shadow of Israphel universe (from the Yogscast of course). I will throw hints of it here and there but it will focus mainly on the main character, for the first part at least.**_

* * *

Chapter 1: Pilot

20 years before the events of SoI...

"Miranda..." A stout and yet soft voice rang out, "This is my son we're talking about! Just because you have two sons already doesn't give us the incentive to give him away! You know who wants to train him!" He brushed his spiky hair out of the way, his two swords rubbing against his leg as they swished around their hilts.

"Haku, you don't understand." The one called Miranda shot back. "It's been only a week since we've had him, but you and I wanted a girl. Even the _doctors_ said that it would be a girl!" She grabbed the handrail and stared down to the icy sea below. "Besides, he'll be with a better family who can raise him."

"I can raise him to be a great swordmaster and you, my dear, can raise him to be the best Skylord this land has ever seen!" He rested a hand on her shoulder. "Give him a chance!" He turned her around so he could stare into her indigo eyes.

Miranda gave a sigh. "No. I'm the ruler of this household. We send him away tomorrow!" She declared loudly.

"But Miranda-" His voice was stopped by a cold blade touching the his throat, the tip barely grazing it. Miranda gave him a furious look, her voice dangerously calm.

"We're sending him away. Tomorrow. Got. It?" She asked, shaking her blade once to intimidate him.

Haku gave a sigh. "Fine. We will." He put his hands up defensively. "Where will the send him though?" He kept his right hand on his sword hilt, just in case. "Not Mistral City. It's too shady. I don't want my son growing up there."

"Vikdal?"  
Haku cocked his head. "The Skylord Capitol?" He stroked his beard in thought. "I guess it's possible. It's the only town that Skyhold has connections with anyways." He turned back into the house, but not before speaking up again.

"You sure about this?"

"I'm positive." Miranda turned away.

With a heavy sigh and a heavy heart, Haku turned to go visit his son. When he got to the room, the baby was asleep, his chest gently rising and falling with his soft heartbeat. He walked over to his son and cupped his head with his hand. His son's indigo eyes opened softly after fluttering and looked up at his father.

"I'm sorry...Taka."

One Week Later...

Walking along a stone brick pathway, surrounded by trees, bristling softly in the wind, and the voices of chattering and gossiping people, all talking about anything their minds drifted off to, a tall woman brushed her golden orange hair out of her reddened eyes. She felt the hand of her friend, a shorter woman, pat her on the shoulder.

"Infertile." The taller woman spoke. "I can't believe what I heard, Nina." She shook her head in disappointment. Just an hour ago, she had went to the doctor, in the hopes of hearing that she could birth a child. Unfortunately, the doctor informed her that, due to a genetic mishap, she would never be able to bear a child.

The one called Nina rubbed the back of her neck in thought, her hand cutting through her smooth, brown hair. She felt a pang of sympathy towards her long-time friend. She thought of something to day, and came up with it.

"I'm sure it'll be alright." She placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Chin up, Amber. Can't you just adopt a son?"

The one called Amber gave a weary gaze towards her friend. "It's not the same. You know it's not the same." She blinked her indigo eyes in confusion. Why did it have to be this way? "Besides...I want a child that _at least_ appears that he shares my genes." She closed her eyes for a second, shaking her head to clear her mind of anything bad thoughts that wanted to break free. "I want a boy. One who will represent the new generation of Skylords." She looked up to the sky where dozens upon dozens of sky ships drifted quaintly along the sky, like millions of low-lying clouds. Whether they had a purpose in Vikdal or not didn't mean anything to Amber. She loved flying, and feeling the wind rushing through her air aboard her aircraft _Charisma. _

Nina, a seasoned skylord, hummed in thought. "He won't have a father though."

Amber knew she made a good point. The boy, if she did end up adopting one, would have no father. Amber thought she had this curse upon her where she couldn't find a man suitable for her, no matter what happened. She figured it would be hard on the child to not have a father, but it would have to be that way.

"Alright..." Amber sighed in defeat. "But there's no adoption clinics here in Vikdal."

"That's right," Nina raised a finger to mark her point, "But...there's one in Setokai the day after tomorrow. That would give you enough time to get there." She shrugged, indifferent. "You never know...you might end up finding the right child for you there."

"Maybe..." Amber drifted off slowly. She walked up to a long pathway that spiraled up into the sky and connected to a winding spiral and twists of sky bridges that seemed to extend endlessly. Every platform and the skybridge was kept afloat by spinning propellers, each powered by the wind. These propellers, a genius invention, also powered the top section of the town, while heat, produced by lava, powered the bottom part of the city.

"Well..." Amber looked up to the sky to see the sun barely touching the west horizon, beads of light shining after it. "I guess I'll head out tomorrow morning." She looked to Nina. "Will you come?"

"Probably not, no." Nina shrugged. "Remember, my ship is being repaired." She was surely right about that. Just a few days ago, Nina was piloting her smaller ship, _Zodiac_, when she accidentally scraped the side of someone's ship, more mainly, Captain Leary's ship _Colossus_. After a lot of explaining, and a successful mission of calming Captain Leary down, the damage was finally inspected. Nina was lucky she had brought in her ship, because she had scraped against the aesthetic spikes of _Colossus_ and ripped one of the engines wide open. The cost actually wasn't that bad, since Captain Leary promised to pay for fifty percent of it, but her ship would have to be in the shop for a week.

"Right, right..." Amber gave a smile, "I forgot. Leary was quite upset with you."  
"Well..." Nina let out a small giggle, "At least he's planning on paying for a lot of the damage. Don't force it too far with him, though. He's the top notch person of the army here in Vikdal."

"Yeah..." Amber cast her gaze to the sky, just in time to notice the precipice of the sun hitting the horizon, letting loose a stream of vibrant reds and oranges. "Well..." Amber shifted her head to the side, "I better go rest. It will be quite a long day tomorrow...and for the few next days."

* * *

The dawn gaze of the sunlight streamed through the windows overlooking the vast ocean, the thin ice sheets on top of it starting to melt because of the arrival of late spring. The rays of light hit Amber's closed eyes, and she didn't want to wake up, but the sunlight forced her to. That's why she always kept the windows open.

Reluctantly, she stepped out of bed and placed both feet on her birch flooring, stretching her arms and cracking her back in front of the window. She rubbed her eyes to remove the rest of the sleep that didn't leave with her mind loading her senses and looked outside. The bottom of the sun had barely reached the hillside. Amber wanted an early start so she would have enough time to make it to at least Mistral so she could spend the night there...hopefully.

With a sigh, she walked over to her messenger bag, where she always kept her travelling items inside. She had more, but according to her, you can never be over prepared. She took off her night gown, tossing it aside to the dirty clothes pile. She reached over into her chest and pulled out the clothes she was going to wear today, which were one of her white shirts, with her flying jacket, a leather-skin and cotton jacket, dyed a warm honey color. She placed her bag over her head, adjusting the sash. She was just about to run outside to the dock when she realized that her forehead felt rather cold. Of course it did. Turning a half circle on her heels, she ran back to her bedside table and grabbed her goggles. Nina called them steampunk looking, but it was the style of her graduating class. She adorned them over her head, adjusting them just slightly.

With that set in mind, she grabbed her house key and ran out the door, locking it behind her. Looking out to the sky, she noticed a few ships in the crisp morning air, but not too many. It would be an easy task to get out of town. She walked a little ways on the skybridge until she reached the dock where she parked her ship, _Charisma_, at. She opened up the gate that led to the side of the boat. She stepped over the small crack between the dock and her ship and stepped onto the ship, not even slightly moving as she boarded it. She waved over to the operator of that certain dock, calling to him to unbind the ropes that held the ship in place. He did without a single question, undoing the tight knots. He pulled the ropes in, making sure not to let the fall below. With a wave of thank you, Amber activated the engine on the ship, hearing it awaken and roar to life. She tested her wheel for steering the rudder on the ship, making sure it wasn't too stiff. It wasn't stiff at all, and so, with a good southeastern wind, the envelope of the ship took the wind and, with a turn of the wheel, the boat followed suit and moved to face the ocean. Casting a shadow over the morning ground, the plants sparkled with a fresh coating of dew. She placed her goggles firmly over her eyes, so the wind shear didn't catch her off guard, and with a tug of the lever, the ship gained speed and flew over the bountiful sea.

* * *

It was well into the day, almost nighttime, when Amber arrived, finally, at land. The rolling hills, covered in fresh snow, overlooked a mountain, with a few holes adorning the side of it. Her boat passed over it, and she got a glimpse of a hole carved into the mountain, looking down into a grassy cave. It was a beautiful sight to see, but it was too distracting, for Amber looked back up and turned swiftly to the left, almost hitting the top of said mountain. She turned to see many trees, it's leafy tops swinging in the wind.

She turned her attention back to an icy sea, and, in the distance, a pathway of cobble leading to lights, breaking through the light of the setting sun.

Amber directed her boat towards the way of the city, but, realizing that she didn't have a parking permit, she found a flat area to land on. She pulled the lever that controlled the engine, and she heard it slow down and the boat slowly descended to the ground, kicking up a small dust cloud as it softly hit the ground. Amber moved the lever into a locked position, making sure the boat wouldn't fly off without her on it. She hopped off the boat, landing firmly on soft ground. She quickly sent a prayer up to Notch, thanking him for safe travel, and then began to walk towards the city.

* * *

"M'am...I'm sorry, but without a permit, I'm afraid I cannot let you into Mistral..." The guard spoke in a gruff voice. He stroked his beard in thought.

"But..." Amber looked to her feet, "I have my Skylord license, if that's enough." She reached into one of the various pockets in her bag and produced a card made out of a thick paper. The guard took it into his right hand and gave it a quick gaze. Her name and all the details she gave were right. One thing stuck out to him though.

"You're from Vikdal?" He asked, with surprise ringing in his voice.

"Yes..." Amber shifted her head to the side, like a confused dog, "Why do you ask?"  
"Do you happen to know Captain Leary?"  
An idea came to Amber as quickly as he said that. "Yes!" She confirmed. "He sent me here to meet up with him." She stuck her pointer finger up in an attitude. "You know...if you didn't let me in, he might-"

The guard began to panic. "O...oh yes ma'm. I apologize. You should have told me sooner that you were meeting Captain Leary here. Um..." He handed her back her license. "Please, go on ahead. Oh, and try the pub 'Talons and Claws' at the top of the city. The path is pretty straightforward."

"Thank you." Amber gave him a stout bow and walked into the city. As soon as she walked in, the sun setting lit the town up in a brilliant shades of orange and reds, and it turned the water in the square of the town a honey colored, as if it was the sweet substance itself. Amber enjoyed the sights, wishing she could capture it in her mind forever, but she was too distracted by the sky walkway, which looked far too treacherous, when she accidentally bumped into another Skylord, and both fell onto the cobblestone ground in pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Amber got up almost instantly and reached out a hand in an attempt to help Skylord up, handing him his goggles that had fallen off in said head on collision.

"Oh...it's...it's nothing." He took his goggles and adorned them upon his black hair, with blots of grey hair here and there. He was able to stand up on his own without Amber's help, his worn, steel sword dragging along the ground as he did so. He was a tall, stout man for his age, as Amber assumed he was at least old enough to be a grandfather. He spoke with a rich voice, and with a dash of humor.

"I don't recall seeing a face like yours around Mistral in my years that I've been here." He spoke, giving a warm smile.

"Ah...no!" Amber clasped her hands together, holding them to her chest. "I'm only staying the night here, for I must set out to Setokai tomorrow. Important matters I must attend to." She brushed the dirt she got on her clothes off, and she noticed that her goggles were missing. Gasping, she looked around until the Skylord stuck his hand out, her goggles swaying in his palm. Without a word, Amber took them and adorned them onto her forehead.

"Thank you. Oh, my name is Amber." She gripped her goggles with both hands, when she wanted to rub it in someone's face that she was a Skylord. "Skylord...Amber."

"Well then...Skylord Amber." The male Skylord held out his weathered hand, giving a smile. "Baako. Skylord...Baako, at your service. I am in charge of the town, and when I'm not, my grandson watches it."  
Amber was unsure of the northern custom of shaking hands, for in her town, bowing was just the same as hand shaking. Nevertheless, she gave a confused stare and reached her hand into his palm, feeling callouses. Baako took it warmly and shook her hand in response.

"You must be from Vikdal. Used to bowing?"

Amber looked up in surprise. "Y...yes! I am from Vikdal." She removed her hand from his hand and rubbed her head in a humorous mistaken way. "How'd you guess?"  
"I know a certain Captain there." He replied. "Well...anyways, you say you're staying the night, no? I can show you a house, if you would like."

"A house?" Amber chuckled. "No, I can sleep in my boat."

Baako raised a grey eyebrow. "Are you positive."  
Amber shook her head politely. "I'm sure. I always come prepared."  
"Very well then." He shook his head. He then beckoned to one of the islands above, where lights were streaming out windows. "Did the guard tell you about the bar up there?"  
"Yes, he did." Amber looked up to the island. "Is it a good pub?" She looked to the seasoned Skylord.  
"Why, yes, it is." Baako responded. "Follow me, and I'll show you the way there." He then began to walk away, past the fountains and down a street of close-together buildings. Amber ran to catch up with him, but kept a short pace as she followed behind his back. He passed various shops and homes until he came to an opening and crossed a bridge, walking past a quaint little home and apartment buildings. He beckoned to the tower at the end of the block.

"Over there is the tower that will take you to the skybridge. It's pretty straightforward from there." He told Amber, who was catching breath. For a old Skylord, he walked pretty fast.

"Alri...alright then." She stood up, took off her goggles, wiped her forehead, and put her goggles back on. "Thank you for your help." She closed her eyes and smiled warmly, in which Baako returned the smile.

"Of course. Now then, I must be on my way. I have a trip to Skyhold to make. If you have anything to say about the city, refer it to my grandson."

"Oh, what's his-" But Amber didn't get a chance to finish before he sped off. She let her arm droop and gave a small smile. She would figure out his name later. She was about to turn around when she noticed a man step out of the single house on the corner, and addressed Baako warmly. She couldn't hear their conversation, but as soon as it started, it ended, and the man that came out of the house patted his sword and ran away, down the path that led out of the city.

Amber wondered in minor confusion who that man was, but nevertheless, she followed up the path and went up the tower, and when she got on the skybridge, she slowed down her pace as the bridge slightly creaked when she walked upon it, as if it would give way, and she hoped it wouldn't, for if it did, it would surely mean her demise.

After walking along a winding path of wooden paths, she finally arrived at the grassy island and walked inside the clearly man-made building. She kept a quiet step, in case the island, suspended by seemingly nothing, fell down to the ground.

Inside, well, it's what you would expect of a small bar. There were some signs that hung on the walls, advertising specific brews, a place or new weapon, or ever wanted posters of people. All around sat people of different places. Skylords, dwarves, normal people, and even a couple living skeletons, covered fully in armor so no one could tell what they were, though they seemed to not be hostile. Amber stepped inside and pulled up a seat in front of the mahogany bar, placing her goggles down on the table in respect, as she was taught to do throughout the land. The bartender, a Skylord, walked up. He didn't say anything, but gave a stare to Amber that informed her to request something.

"What'dya got on tap?" She asked, placing her right elbow onto the counter, resting her head in her hand.

"Just tell me anythin'" He responded, with a bit of harshness in his voice.

Amber raised a hand and moved it in such a way that expressed thought and annoyance, complete with a rolling of the eyes. "I don't know...anything dwarvish?"

"Yeah. Somethin' straight outta Stoneholm. Rocknor." He pulled a bottle out of a bucket of ice, placing it on the counter. It was a brown bottle, and the label on it was written in dwarvish. Of course, the dwarves had the best way of brewing any ale better, but it was quite costly to buy some from them. However, a little gold for them goes a long way.

"Thanks much." Amber took it, and opened the top of it with a bottle opener she always kept on her. She downed a little of it, and it tasted rather oakey, with a hint of malt. Just the way she liked it.

However, she almost spit it out when she heard the voice next to her.

"Amber. Never thought I'd see you here." A deep and commanding voice spoke.

Amber opened her eyes a bit wider, and she choked on a bit of the brew, coughing and unable to swallow the brew. The deep voice man gave a large laugh and slapped her on the back, making her swallow the mix of the beer and spit. She gave a deep breath in and out.

"By Notch's beard...Captain Leary, please don't scare me like that!" She gave a mix of a cough and a laugh.

"My bad, I didn't think you'd be so scared of me." Leary gave a laugh, adjusting his dark brown goggles above his neat and tidy hair. He placed a muscled arm on the counter, tapping his gloved fingers in a rhythmic pattern. "How's that Nina fellow of yours doing?"  
"Nina?" Amber was still slightly dazed. "Yeah, she's doing fine. I gave her my small boat to borrow until hers gets repaired. You should take off those spikes on your ship."

"Nah..." Leary sighed, "It's Nina who should watch where's she going." He gave a laugh. "Anyways, what are you doing here?"  
"Oh, well I have to go to Setokai tomorrow." Amber began, "For personal matters."  
"Personal matters, n'eh?" Leary cracked his back. "Like?"  
"Well...it's personal." Amber shook her head. "I don't want to say." She took another sip of the alcoholic beverage. As soon as she did, she felt a hand on her shoulder, and spun around to the left to noise a...rather odd looking Skylord.

For one thing, he looked young, and he had a black jacket on. The thing that stuck out to Amber, though, was that his cheeks were bright red for a consumption of alcohol, and when he spoke, he spoke with a drunken slur.

"Hey baby, what's 'ur name?" He asked. "'m'mere and tell me'h."

"Uh..." Amber brushed his hand off of her shoulder, which proceeded to sway almost lifelessly. "I'd rather not..."

"Non...sen...sss." The Skylord spoke. "Hey, 'ur new t' town. Mind'f I show 'ya 'round town?

"No, I'm fine, thanks." Amber stood up and began to walk out of the bar, until he felt the hand grab her shirt, and firmly.

"C'm n'w, it'll be easy." He took off running, dragging Amber behind her, much to her displeasure.

It wasn't long until they got into the main square, surrounded by the four fountains, that Amber could get her breath back and shouted a loud "Help!", but she continued to be dragged, so she begged again.

"Please, anyone, help!" She shouted in complete distress. She struggled from the Skylord's grip, and eventually got out and rolled away, hitting her back into one of the fountains hard.

That got a lot of the various people's attentions, especially the one that dragged her.

"'stard! I'll teach'cha to r'll 'way from me'h!" From his torn scabbard, he drew a long, yet formidable steel sword with ease and began to run, half drunkenly, towards Amber, who couldn't roll away at all. She closed her eyes and prepared for pain...but it never came.

Instead, she opened her eyes, and saw that a rather new and durable steel blade, infused with diamond, for it gave off a blue, aqua color in the nighttime lights.

"She said leave her alone." The figure spoke, knocking the sword out of the Skylord's hand, sending it spinning and landing firmly into the cobbled ground. In response, the Skylord ran up to his sword and picked it up, without ease, and held it, swaying back and forth.

"Rrr.." The drunken mess growled in displeasure. "I don' know who y'are, bu' th' girl belon'...t'...t' me'h!"

"No, she does not." The figure swung the blunt edge of his sword onto his shoulder, his cloak, which was tied firmly around his waist, fluttered with his movement, revealing another sword, this one made purely out of diamond. He displayed no emotion as he spoke. "I would leave her alone if I were you."

"Nu'uh...'m showin' her 'round town!" He spoke, swinging his blade in a pissed manner.

The swordsmaster stood up calmly. He didn't speak a word. He looked over to Amber who, as he noticed, had a scrape on her knee, but it wasn't too bad. He took her hand without a word and helped her up.

"Please, Skylord, be careful around him. He get's drunk a lot." The swordmaster spoke, spinning his blade around in his hand.  
Who...who _is_ he?" Amber asked nervously.

Before the swordmaster could answer, a smaller, yet stout Skylord ran between the two, holding up both arms between them, steel sword in hand.

"Enough!" He spoke in the same rich voice that Baako had. He had a white shirt on, with a blue coat on top of it, a few of his badges displayed proudly onto it. He had a pair of dark brown goggles on his head, in the same style as Amber. He also had the beginnings of a moustache.

"Both of you, quit it!" He shouted. "Especially you, Vitali!"

THe drunken Skylord, who was apparently named Vitali, scowled furiously at the blue-coated Skylord. "Stay out of this, boy."

"Boy? I am no boy! I am the watcher of the town when my grandfather cannot watch it!"

"Shut up!" Vitali shouted in fury. He charged the blue-coated Skylord, but the swordmaster jumped in front of him, taking a long and stinging hit to the shoulder. He jumped back with surprising speed, grabbing his shoulder. He saw that the wound wasn't that bad, and he grabbed his pure diamond sword, taking a second to gaze at the blue aura it seemed to emanate.

Amber could take it no longer. She stood up with as much strength as she could muster and ran in front of the swordmaster.

"_Please! Enough!" _She shouted at the top of her lungs, pushing the swordmaster aside. "I don't want any fighting, please!"

That was followed by a few seconds of silence, until the swordmaster got in front of Amber, patting her on the shoulder.

"Listen to her, Vitali. Let's not fight if we need not to." He spoke, shifting his gaze over to the blue-coated Skylord, then back to Vitali, who gave a growl and put his sword away. He didn't take one step until he fell backwards, passed out.

The swordmaster gave a sigh and put away his diamond sword, the blue gaze it cast fading with it. He walked up to the blue-coated Skylord.

"I thank you, Lysander."

"Of course, Deserno." The one supposedly called Lysander responded, who preceded to cross his arms in thought. "That female Skylord over there was bound to react eventually." He looked over to her. "You better make sure she's okay." He gave a curt nod, before walking off, sheathing his sword in his scabbard.

The one called Deserno walked over to Amber, and looked at her for a second, before fixing her goggles, which had went crooked during the whole mishap.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Deserno. I am both a Skylord and a Swordmaster."

Amber was still quite shaken up from the whole thing, so she was speechless, until the swordmaster poked her in the nose.

"Excuse me, are you quite alright, miss?" He asked, shifting his head to the side, confused and worried at the same time.

"Y...yes, I think so." Amber spoke with a shaken voice. She was about to speak again when she heard Deserno wince in pain and grab his right shoulder. Amber could see that there was blood starting to stain his white shirt a deep red color.

"Y...you're bleeding!" She shouted. "Will you be okay?"

"Yeah..." He snorted. "I've had worse injuries." He still looked like he was in pain.

Amber grabbed his left hand and lifted it up to look at his injuries. It wasn't that bad, but it was quite deep.

"Please." She took his arm. "Come to my ship. I can heal that with ease."

The swordmaster looked into her indigo eyes. "'You sure?"  
"Positive."

Deserno smiled warmly. "Lead the way then."

Amber gave a nod, and, with a turn of her heels, she began to make her way back to the entrance of the city, Deserno dead on her heels. The swordmaster had felt that feeling before. The feeling of meeting someone, and having them make your skin crawl and your blood boil. It was a feeling of attachment; love. He wasn't sure if this Amber girl felt it towards him, but one thing was for sure, in his mind. He could see himself with Amber.

He gave a smirk. After all...she is just like her. That woman he knew naught but a few weeks ago. That woman who was taken from him by, well...his Master. Called her a weakness.

His smirk faded. In his mind, Amber was no weakness. She could be of some use to him. All he had to do was play his cards right, and if he did, Amber would truly love him for what he was.

A protector. A hero. A teacher, and most importantly of all...not a tool.


	2. Chapter 2: That Feeling

Chapter 2: That Feeling

* * *

Amber stifled a sigh and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. She leaned back in her chair below the cabin of her boat, grabbing a roll of gauze and, unwrapping a piece, cut it off with her knife.

"This might sting a bit..." Amber voiced. "This might also." She picked up a brown bottle and opened the cap, careful not to spill any of the contents. "It's a substance that's meant to clean the wound." She put some of the liquid on a piece of cloth, and it stained the cloth a clear color, fizzing as it soaked into it.

"It doesn't matter." The swordmaster looked away, lifting up his sleeve to show the wound. The wound was still fresh and, therefor, raw to the touch. However, it was already showing signs of healing, for it had stopped bleeding, and now dried blood caked the wound. "I've had worse wounds than this."

"Oh?" Amber questioned. "Like what?" She leaned in carefully and placed the medicine on his arm, causing him to wince in pain. "Sorry...!" Amber reeled back quickly, placing her hands together in sorrow, as if she had hurt him more than heal him.

"No...it's nothing. It's fine." Deserno breathed out, the pain on his shoulder relaxing. "The worse wound I had?" He looked to Amber, who was carefully cleaning his wound with the cloth. "I'll show you when you're done." He looked to his shoulder, which Amber was now diligently wrapping. "Where did you learn medicine?" He quietly pestered, blinking slowly.

Amber sighed. "My mother was a nurse. She tended to a lot of people back in her day. She told me it was hard for her to learn, but she saved many lives doing it." She looked out her ship window. "Many people came in wounded. I never wanted to go because I thought I would freak out or something like that."

Deserno stifled a laugh, which hurt his wound, and the pain showed on his face. He breathed in through his teeth. "I never learned medicine...or anything like that for that matter." He scratched the side of his cheekbone. "I always taught myself. I taught myself how to handle a sword and bring out its ability. I taught myself how to fly a ship, and even hack it. I taught myself everything I know." He reached over, with his left hand, to grab his diamond sword. He held the hilt with his feet and pulled the sword out, and, as he unsheathed it, the blue gaze of it shown around the wooden cabin, even casting the red light of the lantern as a blue flame. "A friend of mine made this blade for me. It's one heck of a blade, but it's quite heavy to wield for the inexperienced." He handed her the sword, with the blade part of it pointing downwards. "Want to try?"

Amber shook her head. "No, thank you. My blade is light, but durable." She drew back, reaching over to her water supply and rinsing the residue off her hands. "It's made of iron, but it has an emerald core."

"Emerald, huh?" Deserno pondered. "Neat." He leaned forward in his chair. "Like I was saying, I've had worse wounds than this. My worse one...well..." He drifted off. "You might have noticed, when you were wrapping my shoulder, that I had a scar of sorts reaching down my back." He drew his pointer finger, now ungloved, and followed the slender scar down the cuff of his sleeve. "Help me get my shirt off and I'll show you."

Amber looked confused, but Deserno waved his left hand to have her help him. Amber carefully gripped his shirt and removed it over his head, and as she removed it, she saw more and more of the scar until his shirt was completely off. Her eyes widened and she gasped, as if she could feel his pain.

It wasn't just one scar. It was _three_ scars. Each equal in size and shape, running down the length of his whole back, from the top of his neck to his lower back, and it looked like it could continue.

Amber held back tears, but Deserno stifled a laugh.

"You looked scared." He looked over his shoulder. "Don't be. It's way in the past." He relaxed his shoulders. "If you want to know though, I'll tell you. Go ahead; ask."

Amber shook her head to clear away any thoughts. "What...what happened?"

Deserno smirked, and turned back around. "I killed a dragon."

"You..." Amber gasped, drawing back. "You what!?"  
"Yeah, you heard me right. It was terrorizing a main town in the world. I went to kill it, and as I was almost about to run my blade through its neck, there was one of the soldiers that was attacking it. I knew her very well; a seasoned fighter. Well, the dragon tripped her with the wave of his tail and came down on her. I covered her with my body and blocked his attack, but I got this scar in the process. I don't know how I survived. She recalled that I was bleeding profusely. I passed out, and then the next thing I know, I'm in some building and-I still don't believe it-I was alive." He finished his story, much to the surprise of Amber.

"You don't know what happened?" She shifted her head to the side. "That's a bit unorthodox, isn't it?"

"Yeah." He raised his left hand to his chest, and gripped it. "It's by a miracle that I'm alive."

Amber was at a complete loss for words, for she was completely dumbfounded. A man...able to kill whole dragon, and even survive the damned process was baffling to her. She found her grip on her words again when Deserno sheathed his sword. He stood up and was able to put his shirt on by his own. He took his scabbard in his hand and adorned it around his waist.

"I thank ye for this." He placed a hand on his injured shoulder, patting it twice. "I'll take care of it. Hope I'll see you again." He turned on his heels and started towards the door that led to the deck of _Charisma._

"Don't go!" Amber shouted suddenly without thinking, gripping his non-wounded shoulder. Deserno looked over his shoulder in slight annoyance masked by confusion.  
"Excuse me?" He asked in a tone that seemed like he'd draw his blade on her. He squinted his eyes ever so slightly.

Amber quickly drew back, realizing her mistake. She rubbed the top of her head, looking down at her feet. 'W-well, I..." She began to blush. "You looked like your seasoned in...what you do, and all of that. I was wondering if you'd..."

"...yes?" Deserno turned around, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.

Amber looked up to him. "If you'd...maybe...go with me to Setokai?" She bit her bottom lip. There she went _again_. Trying to get someone to like her, and she asked him in the worst way possible. What a let down, she thought to herself. He would never say yes. No one would.

"Setokai, eh?" Deserno spoke up, surprising Amber. "Yeah, you mentioned that earlier. What's so important there, if I may ask?"

Amber drew in a breath of confidence. "I'm going to adopt a son."

The swordmaster made no move of emotion, but Amber could see it in his eyes. A short cross of interest.

Amber offered once again."Would you like to come? Well I mean...have you been to Setokai?"  
"I have, yes." Deserno shook his head. "I go there because the markets there sell fine swords and materials. If your boat has room for two..."  
"Of course!" Amber perked up, interrupting him. "You can surely come along!" She was grinning from ear to ear. Had she finally found the one? At last!?

"Haha..." Deserno rubbed his head and smiled, a beat of sweat rolling down his head. "You seem _too_ eager. What's up?"

"Well...nothing." Amber held up her palm. "Anyways..." She looked out the window, and the starry skies looked clear as could be. "You said you can fly?"  
"I can." Deserno confirmed.  
"Awesome. I'm 'gonna get some rest, and we switch places overnight perhaps?" Amber offered.

"Sure, I see no problem with that." Deserno spoke not another word and turned to go through the door. Amber was going to tell him the truth, but by the time she took in a breath to talk, he was already outside the cabin door.

Deserno took in a deep breath as she stepped outside the cabin. What a strange girl. Truthful and kind, yes, but weird. He shrugged. It didn't matter to him. He just wanted to get to his destination.  
He reached into his satchel and pulled out a compass. He tapped it and it configured itself, showing that it was pointing slightly right of north. He knew that Setokai was due south. He placed the compass on the wooden deck of the ship and looked at the controls laid out before him. He made multiple decisions in his head and found out that Amber's ship was one of the newer models, which he was fully knowledgeable of. He gripped the lever responsible for holding the ship down and released it. He took a hold of the other lever that controlled the engine and pulled it forward. He heard a familiar sound of coal hitting more coal and the engine roaring to life.

With a tug of the lever, he pushed it a bit forward, telling the boat to ascend. With a tug, the force of the wind pushed the boat off the ground and into the air. As soon as he was above the top of the tallest trees in the forest, he could see Mistral. As soon as he cleared the tallest point in the city, he tugged the lever into the hover position. He gripped the wheel with both hands, flicking each finger as he felt worn, yet smooth oak in his hands. With a spin of the wheel, he directed the boat to turn around south. He pulled another lever, the one that responsible for direction, and it clicked firmly into the "forward" position. Wind caught the envelope, and the boat followed suit, travelling southwest

* * *

Amber ran her fingers through her honey-like hair as she walked out of the cabin and approached the swordmaster. "So.." She began, in an attempt to make conversation. "Do you like flying at night? I know I do...you can forget that you're even in the air."

Deserno nodded. "Peaceful, I know. " He let go of the wheel after holding it steady with his diamond blade. "Don't you think it's romantic, too? I mean..."

Amber fixed him with a confused glare. "Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

Deserno chuckled and twirled a strand of her hair in his finger. "Probably, I guess."

Amber snorted in amusement, crossing her arms and turning her head. Men. The always tried to impress the girls.

"What?" The man asked, chuckling. "Am I bothering you or something?"

"No!" Amber laughed. "But you could ask a girl to dance first!"

The misty wind rustled around the skyship, and the man smiled. "Then, shall we dance?"

Amber's indigo gaze met his. She was nervous and began to back away, but Deserno took hold of her hand, and, before Amber could react, placed a hand on her hips, they began to move in rhythm to music that didn't exist but in their minds. One, two , three, one , two, three...

"You look...nice." Deserno said out of nowhere.

Amber blushed. "Yeah well...uh, thanks, or, um...you too! You look nice too..." She looked away. She felt like she was ruining the moment., and, frankly, she didn't want to do this at all. It felt too much out of her character. Although...she never danced with a man before.

Deserno laughed. "Cat got your tongue?"

Amber shrugged, and they continued dancing there. The beginning rays of sun starting to skate over the horizon. Deserno rested a hand on Amber's head, coaxing it to his shoulder.

For a moment, the girl felt a peace that she had never before experienced, but it was quickly replaced by a nagging. A feeling of dread that didn't go away.

What was that feeling of peace? What in Notch's name was it? It was like she had been drugged, completely oblivious. She shivered and pushed Deserno away.

_Never again... _She thought. She never wanted to feel that kind of blissful helplessness ever again, but at the same time, it was all she desired. To want something you fear is almost as conflicting an emotion as affection, a feeling which, until now, had been unknown to her. At least, that intensity of the feeling had been unknown to her.

"What's the matter?" Deserno reached to put a hand on her shoulder in solemn concern. "Are you alright, Amber..?"

Amber yanked her shoulder away from him. "Yes. Fine. I'm just tired. 'Wanna go to sleep.."

She turned around on her heels and walked away with not another word, leaving a confused Deserno in her wake

* * *

Amber awoke in her bed with the familiar sound of her engine. She shot bolt upright in shock, wondering who was driving her boat, but then calmed down when she remembered that the swordmaster...or Skylord...was taking the wheel for her so she could get some rest.

She rubbed her eyes and stood up, stepping out of bed and stretching. she looked out the lone window at the cabin, which, past the back of the ship, showed a nighttime sky, however, the moon was also about to hit the skyline, which means it was almost dawn.

Amber opened the door that led out to from the cabin, and as she stepped out, she saw the wheel, kept straight.

However, no pilot.

She began to freak out a bit. She ran towards the wheel and was about to grip it, when she noticed that it was kept in place by Deserno's two blades. His compass was also on the wooden shelf next to it.

She was confused beyond belief, but when she looked over the wheel, she saw him, and she let out a sigh of relief. However, that relief didn't last.

Deserno was standing on the precipice of the front of her ship. His hands were calmly behind his back, and he had taken his jacket off, so he had his undershirt on, which showed his wrapped, injured shoulder. He apparently had his goggles on, for the lens weren't on his forehead.

Amber began to walk up to him, slowly, so she wouldn't scare him and have to do a mid-air rescue, which she didn't know two cents about.

"Deserno?" She called out, a bit loudly since the wind was slightly whipping. She walked a bit forward, but the trained swordmaster had seen her from the corner of his eye. He turned around to look at her, and smiled.

"Amber." He stepped off the peak of the boat and walked towards her calmly, as if he was oblivious to the whole fact that he almost gave Amber a heart attack.

Amber breathed out a huge sigh of relief. "Don't...don't scare me like that." She put a hand to her chest. "Please don't."

"Haha..." Deserno rubbed the back of his head. "You said you were scared. Why?"

"Well...I thought you'd jump off or fall off." Amber looked to her feet, blushing.

"I'd never do that-in fact..." He outstretched out his left arm. "Join me."  
"...what?" Amber looked dumbfounded.

"I mean on the precipice."

Amber backed away slowly, holding up both hands, panicking. "No. No, no, no, I don't think I should-"  
"I think you should." Deserno took her hand. "You need to be fearless of the skies to be a Skylord. So why aren't you?"

Amber wrenched her hand from his. "I don't...well...I..." She was at a loss for words.

"Alright, I get it." While her guard was down, he got behind her back and picked her up from the armpits and, while she was in shock, took her to the front of the boat.

"Stop it!" Amber tried to wrench free.

"I-" He avoided a kick to the groin, "Wouldn't do that. You don't want me dropping you...do you?"

Amber gasped. She opened her eyes and looked down, which she really shouldn't have. They were a mile or two up in the sky, over a large sea, and Amber hated looking down during flights. She gasped louder and closed her eyes tightly, shaking her head.

"I'm not 'gonna let you down until you get over your fear." Deserno's voice was clear, calming, but commanding.

Amber refused to open her eyes, leading Deserno to sigh in annoyance.

"Just open them a little." He soothed.

Slowly, but surely, Amber opened her eyes a bit and began to anxiously panic, but as she felt the wind in her hair and the landscape flying past her, she began to calm down.

"I did this with someone else...and I freaked out so much...I fell." She admitted.

"I see..." Deserno spoke in an even tone. "I swear, in Notch's holy name, I would _never_ drop you. Never. I would always give you a chance." He held her out a bit farther, causing her to flinch, so he drew her back a bit. "Relax." He comforted. "I got you." He put her feet down on the piece of wood that extended from the ship's nose, and was about to let her go, until he felt her heart start to race again. He put his hands on her shoulders.

It was at this moment that Amber felt something. Something she hadn't felt before. A true attachment...and she knew Deserno felt the same way. It made her heart soar, her blood boil and her emotions go crazy. She opened her eyes back up, smiled and stretched a little farther. She gave a great laugh and outstretched her arms, feeling the wind rushing through her hair. It was like the first time that she ever flew. It was amazing. He was amazing.

"Wow..." She breathed, stepping off the nose of the boat. "That was...incredible."

"See? It's not so bad once you try it." Deserno spoke, stepping off after her. "You need to be fearless to be able to fly."

Amber put her hands together. "I must confess..."

"Yes, go ahead." Deserno began to walk back to the wheel of the ship, as Amber followed close behind.

"When I...had another boyfriend, way back before I graduated...we stole my father's ship and took it for a ride outside of Vikdal, and over the ocean." Amber stopped walking as Deserno removed his blades from the wheel and sheathed them into his belt. Amber walked up and took the wheel for him, her face an emotionless mask. "He told me to trust him, and I did. We stepped onto the boat's nose, as you and I did before. As my boyfriend stepped back from the nose to grab the wheel..." She winced, "It gave way, and I fell down. All the way down into the ocean. I had nothing to support me, but thank the gods we weren't too high up, but the ocean waves were rough, as they always were. I believe I passed out on impact, but I remember being rescued by a experienced Skylord. My father." Amber took a pause.

"I get it. So he wouldn't let you fly until you graduated?"

"No. Until I bought my own boat." Amber turned her head towards him. "I hated my father. Despised him for that day. I couldn't hold a boyfriend after that moment." She took in a breath. "Until I met you, of course. I think you broke that fear."

"Well...it's not my job per say, but I'm always there to help people in need." He looked over the boat's front-end, seeing the wall of Setokai coming into view. "Finally, we're here. Which means the search party should be coming any second now."  
"S...search party?" Amber looked to him with concern. "What...do they do?"  
"Ah, don't worry." Deserno walked over to the wheel and gripped it. "They just make sure you don't have anything harmful aboard the ship, like explosives or something."

"Okay..." Amber spoke, and as soon as she did, a smaller boat came riding up near them.

Deserno, knowing what to do, locked the gear on the boat so it stayed stationary. Amber gave him a look, as if she questioned what he was doing, but he gave her a look back to let her know not to freak out. He let go of the wheel and walked over to the right part of the ship, where the other search ship, known as _Hunter_ came up to them. One of the operators of said ship laid a piece of wood that went across both boats, and up walked the search party leader.

At first glance, he looks like your average everyday Skylord, but as you get closer to him, that's surely not the case. The Skylord wore a trench coat that reached down just above his ankles. Under the jacket, his blade shown in the early morning sunlight. It was a blade made of iron, but infused with a rare metal called cobalt. It made it a formidable blade.

The Skylord has a scar running across his left eye, and he wore an eyepatch over it. If that wasn't enough, he walked with a slight limp, and the squeaking of metal against metal was heard as he walked on an artificial right foot. When he spoke, it was deep and commanding voice.

"Who are you?" He asked, raising a finger towards Amber.  
"Um...Skylord Amber, sir. This is my ship, _Charisma_. It's a registered boat. Oh..um..." She bowed to him, which made him crack a small smirk.

"Nice to meet you, Skylord Amber." He turned to Deserno. "And...Deserno, of course. How could I not know you?"

Deserno looked up to the Skylord. "Ikor." He gave a short bow, which the Skylord known as Ikor returned. "Still sword fighting?" Deserno looked to his foot. "Even on that foot?"  
"This foot does not bother me, swordmaster." He spoke without a hint of emotion. "Your attitude bothers me."

"Ha...it always did, didn't it?" Deserno crossed his arms. "At least we both have scars from that day...yours affecting you in a different way."

Ikor scoffed. "Silence. I am not here to talk. I am here to search." He raised two fingers and swung them forward, signaling his men to search the boat. "Besides, that soldier you saved has gone rogue. Last I heard she was swimming with pirates."  
"Pirates, eh?" Deserno looked with mild interest. "Last I heard she was protecting The Wall from-"

"The Sands are a myth!" Ikor suddenly raged, cutting him off. "No sand can be that corrosive."

"But the Keep is-"

"The Keep is real, but the sands are not." Ikor stormed. "It's just a stupid legend. The desert is surrounded by The Wall mainly to keep prisoners in and everyone else out."

Deserno sighed. There was no arguing with the man. "Fine, whatever you say." He rolled his eyes as Ikor's men came up to him, assuring him the boat was clean. With another stare-down, Ikor turned on his heel and walked back to _Hunter_, his artificial foot squeaking as he did so.

"Oh...and Deserno." Ikor spoke without turning back around.

"Hn? What?" He questioned.

"Meet me outside the library tonight. We must talk." Ikor cast him a glance over his shoulder.  
"Sorry." deserno denied his request. "I'm afraid I'll be shopping for a new blade for Amber over here. Her's is kinked."

"Fine. I'll see you there then." Ikor nodded and, with that, he strode over to his boat and walked up to its wheel, turning it to the right to move the boat away.

Deserno breathed out of his nose in a pissed fashion. "I always hated him." He confessed. "He wouldn't let me kill the dragon that day because of my wound, which I honestly didn't feel since I was blinded by rage." He turned around to face Amber, and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. "When you explore Setokai, be careful where you tread. There's shady people here."

"Oh...okay..." Amber looked nervous, and she was so nervous in fact, that she was shaking, leading Deserno to grip her other shoulder.  
"I know he's terrifying, but if you follow the rules here, I promise he won't kill you or anything." He gave her a stare. "If he hurts you though, you call me. I will defend you with my life."

"But...your sword isn't-"

"My sword is made of diamond." He assured her. "And, no one knows this, but my iron sword's core is manyullian. It's a powerful alloy, probably the most powerful in the land. I can protect you. I shall protect you." With a smirk, he turned back towards the wheel and directed it over the city walls and towards the dock.

Amber, in the meantime, couldn't help but keep thinking. She didn't get it. She honestly didn't. Deserno danced with her last night, but she knew it wasn't right. She felt that Deserno was, indeed, "the one", but at the same time, she felt that it wasn't right. He was a kind guy, but she felt he was hiding something from her...and she was going to find out what.

* * *

**The dancing scene in this chapter is brought to you by a good friend of mine, IceKat9494. She and I have a few collab stories on her profile, if you're interested in reading said stories. Otherwise, see you next time!**


	3. Chapter 3: Transition

**Heads up, this is a shorter chapter, since it is meant to be a transition chapter. Still, don't skip it. It has an important piece of information in it.**

* * *

Chapter 3: Transisiton

"It's...so beautiful!" Amber beamed as she ran over to the wooden handrail of the dock. She looked over the right part of the dock and saw the main gate of the city, and outside it, two statues made of hardened clay standing victorious, keeping watch of the gates. She looked over to the left and saw a building, in which two new travellers were walking into, and to her right, she saw a massive cobblestone structure, designed like a small castle. It was the armory of the town, where people skilled in the ways of the forges, mostly from Dwarven descent, would craft weapons in a giant blast furnace.

"This isn't like I imagined it, Deserno!" She looked over to him, her hair swaying in the wind.

Deserno laid a hand on his forehead in annoyance. "Yes, yes...the city is pretty. It was designed to look like an old city." He stepped up to the left side of the dock. "If you look down here, you can see a lot of the city."

Amber drew away from the main gate and walked up to Deserno's side, and she gripped the handrail. She took in a deep breath.

Aside from people bustling down below the pathways made of stone bricks, the buildings were, as Deserno described, made to look like they belonged in the olden times. To her left, from her view, the things that she noticed first was the giant floating islands, with long strands of vines hanging down from crevices in the rock. However, she then noticed a tall structure, with a large glass dome at the top. It gave off the most light in the city, and inside the dome, many people were using some form of a machine. Looking below, she saw a large farm encased in a glass structure, and various sizes and shapes of houses.

But most of all, what took up the whole skyline, was a giant tree. The tree had a hole in the bottom of it that allowed people to walk into it, where shops, homes and a cafe all resided. Up top, homes hung from trees on thick, sturdy bindings. Along the base of the tree, there were various little stands, where travelling merchants could sell things.

"I want to see that tree-no-I want to see that giant building!" Amber hopped up and down like an excited child.

Deserno sighed and grabbed her by the shirt, and then turned her around so she could face him. "Stop embarrassing yourself. You can be excited, yes, but a lot of the high-ranking Skylords come here. Act your age." He cast her a final glance before walking over to where the start of the dock was. Amber gasped and, adjusting her satchel, she turned from the city skylines and followed behind Deserno.

When the twosome finally got down to the ground level, Amber almost took off running to the nearest thing, but not before Deserno grabbed the collar of her jacket and pulled her back.

"Ach!" Amber choked, "Stop that!" She pouted, trying to break free.

"Please, just...don't draw attention to yourself while I'm away." Deserno gave her a look, as if expressing his annoyance in one eye movement.

"Oh..." Amber stopped struggling and looked down to the stone pathway. "Are you...leaving?"

"For a little bit, yes." Deserno released her, and Amber stumbled a bit forward, and, hitting a loose rock, almost tripped, but Deserno rushed over to her and caught her before she fell.

"Be careful here." His hair swayed in the wind. "People are a bit...unorthodox." He let her go, and she was able to stand up on her own.

"Al...alright..." Amber looked confused, and was about to ask what he meant, but before she could open her mouth and take in a breath to ask, Deserno had already started walking down the path that led to the inner city, his cloak almost motionless.

* * *

"He should be here..." A gruff voice spoke in between the clattering and chattering of people in the casino. The Skylord sat back, cracking his neck. He took the finished cigar butt out of his mouth and pushed it into a small dish of sand, turning it back and forth within his thumb and pointer finger. "Deserno would want a new sword, yes...but he knows what matters are going on." He took a new cigarette out of its pack and lit it with his pocket-size flint and steel. He took a look around the casino.

Everywhere, there were people at the machines. These machines weren't designed by Skylords per say, but they were a genius invention. They had a lever sticking out the side of them and, when the machine was paid and the lever pulled, one of nine items would come out of the hole in the machine. They made quite a noise though, which annoyed the Skylord.

"Master Ikor..." The smallest, and the most high pitched voice, rang out from across the red table, "I'm sure Deserno will be here, n'eh?"

"He's always late." Ikor sat back in his chair, placing a hand on his cheek, taking the cigarette out of his mouth, exhaling the smoke. "That bastard."

"Bastard? Apologies, Ikor, but I believe you are the bastard." Deserno's voice rang out. Ikor turned his head around to stare at Deserno, who was standing there, hands in his pockets. "Don't talk shit about me when you don't know anything about me." He nodded his head to the side, smirking.

"Know your place!" Ikor stood up and gripped Deserno by the shirt, lifting him up and off the ground. "I am stronger than you, and my blade will cut you down at any moment I feel!" He stared into Deserno's eyes.

"Oh come now, Ikor." Deserno breathed out of his nose in annoyance, "You're attracting unwanted attention." He raised his free hand, for his other hand was holding onto Ikor's arm, and he gestured to everyone in the casino, who had gone silent and was staring at the twosome in awe.

Ikor cast them all a glance with his one eye and, when he spoke out, his voice was commanding. "Go back to what you're doing. Nothing to see here." He set down Deserno roughly, but he was able to hold himself up so he didn't fall. With a final glance from Ikor, the people went back to what they were doing, and the sounds returned.

"Jeez...you almost broke my neck..." Deserno sat down, rubbing the front of his neck with his palm. "Don't do that."

"You just need to learn your place, little fool." Ikor sat down carefully, placing his artificial foot on the bottom pole of the table. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaled more of the smoke. "Want to play?" He raised a hand to the table.

"Oh, Twenty, huh?" Deserno sparked in interest. "Sure, I'll play a game."

Bet Them, or as it was known in Skylord terms, Twenty, was an interesting game. Basically, each player brought an item that they wanted to bet. The player was then given a black cup to put the item under. A dice, twenty sided, was then randomly rolled in a black cup and placed on the table. Each player previously chose a number, one through twenty, and the player with the closest number got to pick a player's cup and take that item.

"So then..." Deserno placed his item under his cup, a fragment of iron. "What's the news with that search party?"

"You mean the ones in charge of exploring that desert?" The high-pitched voice rang out. He put his item under his cup. "I heard they found something. Like...someone said it was a giant, metallic hand sticking out of the desert!" He flicked his fingers in front of his face in a mysterious matter.

"Lies, Clink, lies." Ikor placed his item under his cup, gesturing to the other person at the table. "That doesn't make sense. It's meant for prisoners, not this so-called 'Power of the Desert.'"

"Think before you say." Deserno rolled the die and placed it under the cup. "I'm feeling...14."

"Hmm..." Ikor sat forward in his chair. "7"

"Um..." Clink spoke. "10..."

"And reveal." Deserno removed the cup, showing the dice with the number "13" sticking up to the ceiling. "Haha...yes."

"'Ts..." Ikor scoffed. "The Sands are a myth, as I've said beforehand." He looked over to Deserno, who was looking to choose one of the two cups. "But you know what I've heard?"

Deserno chose Ikor's cup, and he, almost reluctantly, removed it, showing a piece of pure gold. "Score!" Deserno picked up the piece, examining how the rays of the glowstone lights reflected off of it, and pocketed it. "So what have you heard? That you're wrong?" He looked over to Clink, who was drinking his water.

"Ralph is back."

"W...what!?" Deserno leaned forward, placing both hands on the table, while Clink beside him almost choked on his water, if not for Deserno hitting his back a few times.

"'Ya heard me right." Ikor took the finished cigarette out of his mouth and rubbed it in the plate full of sand. "I heard he escaped The Sands. He was one of their most highly-watched prisoners." He looked up. "I wonder how he escaped."

"He got more power." Deserno spoke up after a silence. He crossed his arms. "He must of finally got that Power of the Sands."

"I doubt it." Ikor shook his head. "He probably just-"

"Stop living in your lies, Ikor." Deserno shot him a glare that made even him silence his tongue. "You know that The Sands exist. You just don't want to believe it." He sat back. "Why?"

"You little..." Ikor shook in almost unrestrained rage. "Because the last time someone tried to obtain that power...they almost destroyed the land!"

"My point, exactly." Deserno took his cloak from off his chair and adorned it around himself. "Sure, that power is not to be released, as it has been spoken in Legends. Use that brain of yours. If he's obtained the power, he can suppress it if he wishes to. As an adventurer, he knew the seal would break, so he took a chunk of the power and suppressed it." Deserno stood up. "He knows what he's doing." He turned away.

"Where are you off to now?" Ikor stood up behind him. "Not to find Ralph, I hope..." He squinted his eyes.

"Nay." Deserno turned to look at him. "I'm going back to Amber. She wants a son. I'm going to have her adopt _that_ child."  
A bead of sweat rolled down the back of Ikor's neck. "You mean...?"  
"Yes, that's right." He turned away. "Taka."

* * *

Amber looked around, like a confused dog. She took her time alone from Deserno to explore a few of the buildings. The town wasn't like her home of Vikdal. It was way different. It was less cluttered and fewer airships floated about. It was a lot quieter too, especially when the sun was setting. The town was still in development too, and another part of the city still had baseplates for new homes.

Amber looked to the sky, just as the sun was setting. She sent a quick prayer to Notch for a safe journey here, like she always did. She also asked him for a blessing. A blessing that she and Deserno would be together, and that the child she longed to have would be a great skimmer of the skies.

She diverted her attention from the sky and back to the pathway before her. As she walked past an unfinished area, she came across the older part of the city.

The thing that stood out the most was a gigantic building with a pointed roof. Inside its doors was what appeared to be a row of wooden shelves with something on them. She got to the top of the steps and noticed old buildings made of brick and wood. They were fairly small and not very impressive. A pathway led down to a hill, in which a minecart filled with coal and coal ore, as black as spider's heart. The minecart sped up to a building, where it then stopped, dumped off its contents onto a large pile of coal, and then it sped back down into the shaft. Past the coal depository was another gate that led out of the city.

"Deserno seems to be busy..." Amber pondered to herself, "I might check out that giant building." She turned her attention to the building with the pointed roof, and began to walk down the now brick pathway towards it. She veered around a Skylord, and she stepped up to the building.

The side of it was adorned with wooden panels, and behind the panels were a finely cut square of glowstone, which cast the front of the building in a honey-like glow. When Amber entered, she realized it was a library...but not just any library. It was the archives for Setokai and the three major towns closest to it, Mistral and another city that had since been destroyed by a massive fire, but it's name was Erion.

As Amber looked up, she saw rows upon rows of books, all different shapes and sizes, and some covered in a special paper that kept any substance from ruining the book, like the oils on someone's hand.

"Looking for something?" A gentle voice commented behind her. Amber turned to notice a figure wearing a light brown cloak. She wouldn't have known he was an archivist unless she saw that his hair was kept neatly back behind his head.

"Not really...no. Just browsing." Amber gave him a curt nod, but then she had a thought. "Do you have any good stories about ancient times, or legends perhaps?" Amber held up her hand.

"We do, yes." The archivist spoke, pointing to a large section of books. "Over there."

"Thank you." Amber gave him yet another nod, to which he responded with a smile and a small laugh, and he then returned to placing old scrolls on the shelf in a certain order.

Amber walked over to the shelves he had pointed to, and scanned the books across with a finger. She stopped when she saw an old book whose cover had been slightly torn, so the title wasn't legible. She carefully removed the book off the shelf and turned the cover.

"'Sand shall not dull my blade.' What a weird title." She pondered out loud. She turned the first page carefully, and she could've sworn that when she turned the pages, she felt something grainy under her fingertips.

"Do you know what that means?" She heard a familiar voice speak behind her. She turned around with a gasp, but her heart slowed down as she noticed it was the one man that she couldn't keep off her mind.

"Deserno..." She took a step back against the bookshelves. For some reason, under just a short glimpse, she could've sworn she saw something she hadn't seen before in the man. An expression that looked as if he would kill anyone with just a single stroke. "Are you...alright?" She cautiously asked.

"Hmm?" He looked to her, that anger replaced with a softer expression. "Oh yes, of course. I was just in thought. A Skylord friend of mine has returned, and that phrase reminded me of it."

"Yeah, what does it mean?" She asked, cocking her head to the side like a confused puppy.

"'Sand shall not dull my blade.'" He began, "These words were spoken by the great hero that was said to have saved the land from destruction. Destruction...by sand."  
"Sand?" Amber look surprised.

"Heh...I half expected you to be surprised. Yes...there was once a desert that spread and choked the land, however, this hero stopped the evil at its roots...but died in the process. His son carried on his legacy." He paused, and that glimpse of anger returned. "A friend close to me, Ralph, got trapped in the desert after exploring it. However...he's back. He walked the whole desert."

"Wow...really?" Amber didn't know what to say other than that. She didn't know about this evil...or who this 'hero' was, but it all sounded too much like an epic novel. "Why do you seem upset about that?"

Deserno looked at her, and then looked around, seeing a lot of people. "I want to tell you in private." He began to walk out of the library, then gestured for the Skylord to follow him.

Amber gasped, and, putting the bookshelf back on its place, followed him.

* * *

As soon as they were outside, Deserno turned to her. "Listen to me, Amber. There is something that no one should know in this land." She took her over to where the wall began, and sat down, Amber following suit. "Yet, somehow, I can feel it. Somehow. I have no idea why, but I can feel something. It feels like..." He clutched his chest, "A knot in your chest that won't go away."

Amber had no words, but Deserno continued without her talking.

"There's an evil brewing in this land, and it will be coming soon with a vengeance."

"Wh...what!? What evil? What are these Sands?" Amber exploded with questions, but Deserno placed a finger on her lips.

"I will tell you the story. When The Sands that were about to choke the land came, the hero and his son sealed awa the evil under the sands, but the hero died in the process."

"Whose this hero?" Amber questioned.

Deserno put on a thoughtful face. "I'm not entirely sure." He honestly answered. "What did that book of yours say?"

Amber thought back to the pages of the book. It was written in an ancient language that she wasn't skilled in, but she could read names, for they were written in the same language of today. "Verigan, I think the book said."  
"Alright. So, he died in the Battle of the Sands, sadly, but his son continued on his legacy and build the keep under his name. The keep that monitors The Sands, but that wasn't enough. With the help of the dwarves of Stoneholm, he built The Wall, a barrier that kept the sands from spreading, for it had a powerful spell placed upon it."

"So where does your friend come in?" Amber questioned, and softly, so she wouldn't bring his rage back up.

"Ralph?" Deserno remained as calm as he could. "He was an adventurer. He took a trip into The Wall, but he stopped sending us letters, so we all assumed he was dead. Until..."

"Until?"  
"He suddenly sent us a letter after two years, but not like we had heard before. It told of something evil beneath The Sands, but that he was able to take a chunk of this 'things' power and quell it. However, the letter contained something at the end. he told us that he would be coming back 'not like anyone remembered him.', whatever that means." He clenched his fist on his pants, turning his knuckles white. "I have a feeling that Ralph has absorbed this power and turned himself into something...monstrous."

Amber gasped. Although she didn't know who Ralph was, she suddenly could have sworn she felt the same pain in her chest that Deserno was feeling. That was, until, Deserno laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Do not worry, dear Amber." He patted her shoulder. "If he has obtained this power, The Wall will keep him inside."

"Right..." Amber looked up to the Sky, where the sun was now starting to hit the western skyline. "Wow..." Amber stood up, stretching. "We wasted a whole day, didn't we?"

"Mm...yes, we did." Deserno turned his head away, a blank expression plastered onto his face. "I don't mind sleeping out her, next to the wall of the town. Do you?"

"But...won't it get cold here?" Amber asked.

"Not if I have this." Deserno took off his satchel and unfastened it. he reached into it and, after some pulling, produced a thick sheet made from thick cotton. "Want to sleep under it?"  
"But you won't have one?"  
"Yes, I will." Deserno reached into his back with a smile and pulled out another one made of the same material. "Have a good sleep." He tossed her sheet. "You'll need it for tomorrow, won't you?"  
Amber looked confused, but then she remembered why she actually came to Setokai in the first place. "Oh my Jeb, you're right!" As quick as a wink, she laid down, pulled the sheet over her, got comfortable, and in no time at all, she began to breathe softly.

A bead of sweat ran down Deserno's forehead as he chuckled softly. He had _never_ seen someone fall asleep that fast. After a short laugh with himself, his laugh faded and it replaced with the feeling of a rock in his stomach. He hung his head, sighing. He remembered the last words that Ralph had said to him.

_Deserno..._

_Yeah...Ralph?  
I can't wait to explore The Sands! Looky, looky! There it is! There's The Wall! Impressive, isn't it?_

_I guess..._

_What? You're not excited?_

_The Sands aren't impressive to me._

_What!? The evil was sealed here!_

_The twosome walked towards the wall, and as soon as he was about to scale it, Deserno expressed his worry._

"_Deserno, my friend." He sighed. "This wall doesn't faze me. This desert doesn't faze me. I live for this shit, man, I do." He turned back to him. "I told you I will send letters. If I find something, I will note it." He turned back. "Remember, Deserno. If something happens to me...expect the worse. Except that the evil that the heroes fought to seal are back." And with that, he scaled the wall, finally reaching the top. With a final salute, he adjusted his glider on his backpack, which he had invented, and jumped off the wall into the darkness of the desert._

Deserno snapped back to reality. He had been expecting the worse for three years. The day he woke up to sand outside his front door...or the day that The Wall finally failed.

But no. Nothing had come. Visiting The Wall multiple times had probably taken a toll on himself. He looked to the sky, which was now almost dark. He sighed and placed his head in his palm.

If Ralph was back, and the worse was expected, that could mean only one thing.

The evil is coming.

And it was returning with a vengeance.

* * *

"That's The Wall?" A high-pitched voice spoke.

Night had fallen on the terrain as the figure looked up at The Wall in awe, but winced when he saw the protective torches set up around The Wall, to keep anything out and anything in.

The figure beside him, a slender figure covered in a dark, black cloak, as dark as the Nether itself, nodded. "It is." He spoke in a deep, menacing voice. "But I cannot break it, not yet. I am too weak. Too-" The figure suddenly collapsed, hitting the shifty ground below him. He coughed up a chunk of thick, black blood.

"My Master-"

"Nay, I am fine." he coughed up a bit more before shaking his body and, with difficulty, stood up on his feet.

"As you can tell, I am not used to this body yet."  
"Of course." The high-pitched voice spoke.

"But, if I were to rest in _its_ core for ten years...then I will be used to it." He turned his hooded head towards him. "I must ask you a favor."  
"Yes, m'lord."

"A boy will brew from a small town. He will be the one that I will take on as my co-leader. He will become a hawk. When he is of age...find him. Bring him here to The Wall." The figure cracked a smirk, showing his yellowed fangs under his hood, splattered here and there with thick blood. "He will be my heir. Do as I tell you, Clink, and you will be rewarded greatly."

"I understand."

* * *

**This chapter is brought to you partly by **_italics_.

**This is a good place to leave it. I've set forward a good chunk of the story here. Now all we need to do is get to the main character, Taka. **

**I also thank a good friend of mine for spell checking these. Way to go, Sakko!**

**See you next time (on Shadow Block I...!)**


	4. Chapter 4: The Findings

**Before we start the chapter, let me say this. I will be doing a jump cut after this chapter about six or so years ahead, however, I will explain the important events in between it and then.**

* * *

Chapter 4: The Findings

Deserno awoke with a start, hearing some form of a distant rumble, most likely a ship starting up its engine. He looked up to the sky, and noticed that the moon was still in the sky, but it was getting slightly brighter outside, meaning that it was almost sunrise. He then noticed the ship that had made that noise.

Amongst Skylords, it was one of the most famous ships; even more famous than Captain Leary's ship _Colossus._ It's full name was _King of the Clear Skies_, but everyone referred to the ship as simply _King._

The ship was huge. In fact, huge was an exaggeration. The ship had the biggest envelope of any ship, and, to control its movement, it had two large fins protruding out each side of the boat, and a large one in the back as well.

The ship was adorned with the symbol of the Skylords, a diamond with a ring of silver, blue and then gold in the center. It had the symbol made out of iron, lapis lazuli, which was a gem used for aesthetic purposes, and in the center was a block of gold. The symbol was on both sides of the ship.

The ship itself had three levels, one for the Captain's deck, then the deck open to the elements, and then the lower deck where the engineers worked and slept.

_King _had been in many battles, and used as a transport ship, rescue ship, and even prisoner ship, since it had a detachable cage on the bottom.

However, no one had ever discovered its captain.

Deserno placed his hands behind his head. He didn't really care who the pilot was or what specs the ship had. He just loved the sound of it, and, besides, he had ridden on it before. Illegally, of course. He was known for doing those type of things.

He gave a sigh and looked over to Amber, who was sleeping peacefully, her chest rising up and down with her calm but steady breath.

"Wonder what will happen..." He trailed off in his thoughts, "When you finally see him?" He spoke to Amber, though he knew she was asleep. He placed a hand onto her head. "I hope you get him."

He was, of course, referring to a particular child in the adoption clinic, for he himself had taken a glimpse into it. In the way back was a child with dark blue eyes, matching Amber's. He wouldn't stop crying though, no matter what the people helping there did, and for a good reason. The child would only stop crying when he was placed in the right hands of people.

Now, how did Deserno ask this? Perhaps it was just his second sense, or how many times he had seen someone raise a child, but for whatever reason, he knew that Amber and the boy would get along.

* * *

The rays of light beaming from the sun trailed onto the grass, causing the dew in the grass to sparkle like a million tiny diamond shards. As the full body of the sun was shown brilliantly in the sky, its rays spread out all throughout the town, and one even resting down onto Amber's face.

Amber shut her eyes tighter, as she hated when the sun was in her eyes. She wanted to sleep more. She didn't have a good sleep the day before, but last night she did. Slowly, but surely, she opened one eye, and, looking around, noticed people beginning to walk around and leave their houses. She opened the other eye and shielded the sunlight away from her eyes with her right hand.

"You're finally awake, huh?" Deserno spoke to the right of her. She looked up over to see him already up and raring to go. "You were shifting a bit last night. Bad dream?"  
"Not really, no." Amber stretched her legs and her feet and stood up, reaching her arms above her head as far as they could go. "It was just uncomfortable, but I did sleep quite well after that."

"Yeah. You missed _King_ passing over the skyline at about dawn." Deserno commented. "The thing had a box underneath it, most likely transporting something precious."

Amber put on a disappointed look. She always wanted to see the breathtaking view of _King_ in all its glory. "So when does this clinic open up?"

Deserno reached into his shirt pocket and produced a watch. In the land, the watches were designed with a disk placed into it. One half of the disk had a blue background with a yellow circle in the sky, designating the daytime, and the other half had a dark blue sky, almost indigo, with a white circle in the sky, designating the nighttime. He opened it with a press of a button on top and, as the cover opened, the gears working in it shifted the disk. Before he opened it, there was a split between the two disks, with the sun part being on the left and the moon part being on the right, meaning sunrise, but the disk had shifted to the left one tick, meaning that the day was just starting. In other world terms, this would mean about 9:00 in the morning. "It starts at about 11, I do believe." Deserno commented, closing the cover of the watch and placing it back into his pocket, patting it twice. "Are you hungry?"  
Amber shot him a look that answered his question, but she spoke up. "Of course I am. I haven't eaten since last night." She moaned, placing a hand on her stomach. "I had no idea there were places to eat here. I just thought it was a town meant for stops."

Deserno cast his eyes to the sky, the sun's full shape now visible. "I guess it's a passer-by town, but I still like to come here." He looked back to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Hungry? Or can I go looking for blades?"

Amber thought for a moment. She brushed his hand off of her shoulder gently. "I...suppose we could go eat first." She began to walk in front of him, but not before stopping in her tracks, realizing that she had no idea of any places that served food in the entire town of Setokai.

"Well...um..." She rubbed the back of her head, turning around, "Why don't you lead us?"  
Deserno couldn't help but give a light chuckle. "Yeah, you've never been to Setokai, anyways." He walked in front of her and didn't stop, leaving Amber to follow behind him after some consideration of whether or not he'd wait for her.

"So..." Amber said as she got beside him. "Where are we going to?" She finished her sentence as they stepped onto the old cobblestone pathway.

"A place that recently opened up. They serve everything there." He still walked forward until, not thirty seconds later, they came in front of a old-looking building. It had a brick base and great natural lighting. Inside, there were already dragon tongues lapping at the wood in the fireplace, and the smoke that was coming out of the chute didn't let light shine through it.

"So what's the name?" She walked upto the sign that was hung on nails by a rope. The letters were clearly engraved onto the wooden sign. "Justin's...Retro Restaurant?" She put on a confused look, raising an eyebrow. "What kind of name is that?"

"You'll like it." Deserno reassured her, grabbing the copper-brass doorknob and giving it a turn to the right. He opened the door and it opened with a creak. As he stepped in, the several people inside turned to look at the twosome. One or two people gave an expression of minor realization and shock, since they heard from stories whom Deserno was, but otherwise everyone else turned around and back to their food.

Inside, the floors were a fairly worn oak with birch lining the middle of the room in a cross. The seats around then were also wooden with patterns carved into the back of them, and the tables were wooden too, with a tablecloth placed over them.

It had a flat jukebox, a type of machine that played records of various styles of music. There wasn't any music playing, for the chirping of the birds and the call of the hawks were enough ambience for them, but records of numerous shapes and sizes were next to it.

What stuck out the most was a bar at which people sat. Behind the bar was a man, who was tall, and his hair was also thinning a bit. After crouching down to reach a bottle of water, he stood up and took his apron from the counter, tying it around his waist.

Amber didn't really speak, she just looked around the room. Seeing company like this made her nervous, but Deserno placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and began to walk, taking Amber with her.

"Two seats." He held up his pointer and middle finger in succession. The man behind the counter looked over to two seats in front of the bar, both of which were next to each other. Deserno gave a nod and walked over to the seat, grabbing the back of it and pulling it towards him, and then he sat down. He looked at Amber, who got the idea and was doing the same.

The man walked over to them, who picked up a glass and was drying it with a rag. He didn't speak, as he expected the twosome to tell him their order, but when he didn't, he spoke. He spoke with a thick accent that was closely reminiscent to the more western kind of people.

"Wha'dya want?" He asked, placing the cup down on the counter.

"Oh, sorry." Amber gave a smile, leading the guy to raise an eyebrow. "Um...what do you-"  
"You have tea?" Deserno interpreted her, noticing that she wasn't ready to order, and she hadn't clearly seen the menu hanging on the wall.

"Sure thing." The guy responded. he turned his back to the two and went over to the stove to grab the tea, which he had taken care to make earlier.

Amber looked over to Deserno and shot him a glance. "What did you do that for? I was about to order." She whispered through her teeth.

Deserno cast her a neutral glance. "I could tell you weren't ready." He looked out the window. "Don't worry."

Amber looked away. This always happened. She liked someone, they'd go somewhere to eat, and she would always say something and never catch herself before the words escaped her mouth. She put her hands together, twiddling her thumbs. Now she just felt ashamed and embarrassed. She cast a glance around the room. No one was looking at her. She looked back to the wooden counter and then looked again. She noticed a man across the room cast a glance at her.  
Amber gave a gasp and turned back around quickly, hanging her head. She didn't want to be noticed if she was embarrassed.

She was looking down at the wooden counter when she noticed a worn hand place a cup full of a brown, steaming liquid on a plain glass plate. Amber brushed her bangs out of her face and looked over to Deserno, who got the same thing.

"Excuse me, sir." Deserno looked up. "May I get your name?"

The bartender turned around to face him. "Citor. That's m' name." He then turned around to go back to what he was doing.

Amber looked down to the cup of tea, and how the steam trailed up and hit her nose, bringing forth an aroma of different leaves. She picked up the cup and placed it to her lips, taking a sip. It wasn't too hot, so it could be enjoyed immediately. She placed down her cup carefully, still keeping the same expression.

"So, Amber." Deserno spoke up, placing down the cup of tea, which some of it was gone from the cup. "What did you say your sword was made out of?"

"Oh." She looked over to him. She took her scabbard off, which was across her back, and handed it to him. Deserno took it in his hands and gripped the blade, feeling leather. He slowly pulled the sword out, but not all the way. He turned it around in his hands, investigating it and feeling the weight.

"Steel." He turned it a bit more, with an amused expression. "And an emerald core. Jeez, why did you get this?" He sheathed it, handing it back to her. "Emerald is really bad. Sure, it's pretty to look at, but it's not tough at all."

"W-well..." Amber was nervous, "I made that sword. I chose emerald 'cause I thought it was a strong material."  
"Well, sure." Deserno took another warm and comforting sip of the tea, and placed the cup back down. "Emerald gives the sword more durability, but it also makes it a bit less dense. Oh well, I guess it's the best thing you guys have access to in Vikdal." He finished his tea in a quick sip. "If you want to go to the adoption clinic, I'll find you a new sword." He offered.

"I don't see a problem with that." Amber spoke. "Just get something durable and not crappy, alright?" She raised an eyebrow, picking up her cup of tea and finishing it in a few sips, not speaking a word. After she was done, she stood up and began to put her pouch back on. Deserno stood up too, thanking Citor and paying him respectively. Without another word, the twosome left and and walked outside.

"The clinic should be at the giant tree you see over there." He pointed to the giant tree, leafless since it was the end of winter. "I will be around there, looking at the market stands. If you need anything, you can find me." Without another word, he began to walk down the path to the tree, Amber following him behind.

* * *

Amber stood in front of the entrance to the giant tree. She looked up as far as she could, but she couldn't see the top of it, for it was scraping the lower clouds. The tendrils that grew from the tree at the top grew upwards mostly, trying to touch the heavens. Small platforms hung from the giant, thick limbs of the lower part of the tree. There was also a small hole in the tree, where some people stood. Amber took in a deep breath and walked inside.

Inside it was hollowed out, with various buildings carved into the wall and even extending underground. There was a small house next to her, and to her right was a cafe. There was a small wooden structure attached by a thick rope that slid up and down the tree, used to transport people and goods to the top.

Amber looked up in awe as figure of the tree twisted and turned all the way up until it hit the top, where warm, peaceful sunlight beamed inside, making the place brighter than it actually was.

She walked forward, where brown clay, shaped like the tree, was built as a wall to house events coming to town. She opened the wooden door and walked inside.

When she did so, she didn't see what she expected. Yes, there were small beds made for infants, but they were all empty.

All...except one.

In response to Amber's entry, the child began to cry his indigo eyes out. The helpers there rushed over to the boy, trying to comfort him, but to no avail. Amber was taken aback, but she walked over to them anyways.

"Ugh..." The female sighed in exasperation, "He always cries. I can never get him to stop."

"Well..." Amber spoke up, prompting the male and female to turn their heads towards them, "I think you're doing it wrong. Let me..." She gently took the child from her hands and held it under her arms gently. As she held the child against her chest, he began to cry softer and softer until he stopped altogether, seemingly asleep.

The male was astonished. "How'd you do that? We couldn't get him to remain quiet, well, not without lots of trouble."

"I'm not sure." Amber admitted. "I just did what came naturally to me." She looked up the twosome. "Who is he?"

"Well..." The lady shifted through a stack of papers, until she found the child. "He came from Skyhold."

"Oh?" Amber spoke up in interest. "Awesome. What's his name?"

"Well...if he comes from a Skylord family, then they gave him a dwarven name. It's Taka."

"Taka...Taka..." Amber looked down to the child, his dark blue eyes fluttering as he truly fell asleep, "That has a good ring to it. I'll take him." Amber looked to the twosome. 'I'll take him." She said a bit loudly, getting their attention.

"Sure thing." The male held up his hands. "Take him off our hands" He lightly joked. "Oh, and he came with this." He picked up an object off of the desk. Upon closer inspection, it was a pocket watch, encased in silver. It had an unusual mark on the front of it. On the inside was the same disk, but it appeared older and fancier. Also, the inside cover had some strange writing on it. It was ancient tongue, and Amber couldn't read it.

"Sure, I'll take that too." She took the pocket watch and placed it in her bag. With the child in her arms, she thanked both of them and walked out of the building and exited the tree completely. She looked left and right, and she finally set her eyes on Deserno , examining various curios on a market table.

"Enjoying your look?" Amber asked him, walking up. Deserno looked up from the table, and cracked a smile when he noticed that she had found the perfect child. "What's his name?"  
"Taka."

"That has an awesome ring to it. It means hawk in dwarvish. Is he from dwarven descent?"  
"No, he's from a family of Skylords." Amber responded.

"Alright." Deserno turned back to the table. "So that one has a good core, yes? I'll take it."

"The shopkeeper scoffed. "It's a rare metal. I'll cost you more than a few materials."

"Alright then." Deserno stood back up. He reached into his pouch and produced the piece of gold he had won from Ikor last night. "Will his cover it?" He handed it over to the shopkeeper, whose eyes caught the piece of gold with want. He took it from him as quickly as possible. He looked at it for a good minute, turning it around in his hands. It was, in fact, a pure piece of gold. He looked up.  
"That will surely cover it." He spoke without another word. Deserno gave a smile, thanked him, and took the sword, which the shopkeeper gladly gave them a scabbard for it for free.

As they walked away, Deserno spoke up. "That's what you got to do. Haggle with them. Anyways..." He handed her the new sword. "Here 'ya go. I tried to find a sword of similar weight."

Amber took it from him after handing him the child, and, surprisingly, it felt the same as her sword did. She grabbed the handle, which was wrapped in stingray skin, and pulled the sword out. It was made of steel, forged a few times over in a blast furnace, but it was still somehow light.

"And the core?"  
"It's a rare metal that exists deep within the earth. It's called Aridite."  
"Awesome..." Amber sheathed the sword and tied the scabbard around her back and shoulder, feeling no difference from her other sword. She took back the child. The twosome then began to make the walk back to Amber's ship, _Charisma._

* * *

"So now what?" Amber spoke from her ship as Deserno was untying the ropes that held the ship in place. A few minutes ago, Amber put the child in her bed inside the cabin, which was made to be soundproof. The child was now sound asleep, turning on his side occasionally.

"So...now what?" Amber asked Deserno the inevitable question.  
Deserno turned to face Amber, his eyes aglow in the early evening sun. "What do you mean?"  
"Are you staying, or are you leaving?" Amber asked him. "I'm curious because...well...I think I've taken a liking to you."

"Yes...I thought you would ask this." Deserno hopped onto the boat as it drifted slowly from the dock. "I've actually taken a liking to you too." He shrugged. "I know. Why don't we get back to Vikdal and see how this child does? After all, I think I'm not the only one he's taken an interest to..." Deserno gave a smirk, giving a small chuckle.

Amber returned his smile, breaking into her own. She hadn't smiled for days. It felt good and refreshing. "I say...we raise him together." He took his hand into her own. "Right?"  
"I say...we do." Deserno looked back to her. He took one hand on the wheel and, giving it a spin, turned away from the dock, the wind running through his hair. He knew she would pick him, and it was only a matter of time before the boy became an asset to the Skylord army. Or perhaps Amber hand another thought in mind for him? Forging? Mining? Whatever it was, the kid would be good at it.

_Even more so..._a voice said in the back of Deserno's head, _He has that...well...he has something special inside him_. He looked out to the sky. _And he'll see what it is when it's older_.


	5. Chapter 5: The Meeting

**Just so you guys know, I won't be able to get these out a lot coming up in September and all, but nevertheless, I will still write as much as I can.**

* * *

Chapter 5: The Meeting

It was high afternoon, and the sun shined brilliantly onto Vikdal, turning all the higher buildings into sparkling displays. One particular beam of light shone off the window of one house, reflecting it like a mirror into a swordmaster's face, making him rather annoyed.

"Too bright..." He complained, shielding the sunlight away from his face. As much as he enjoyed the sun, and the accompanying strength it gave him, sometimes, it just annoyed him. He bent down and gripped the tool he was just holding, standing up after grabbing it and wiping his brow. He placed arm over arm on the top of the tool, resting his chin on it.

Amber decided that, in the summer, she wanted to have a small farm, since fresh produce was scarce around the Skylord Capitol. It was hard to move it over the ocean, and the skyships could only carry so much.

He sighed and looked over to the house, which sat on one of the various hills that protruded from the city. The wall, which was large, heavily patrolled at night, and had great wooden arches, stood where it always were, looming over the land outside the walls, which extended into a desert. Many a time the swordmaster explored the desert, claiming that it wasn't a real desert.

Nevertheless, he still found great artifacts there, and even a mine. The mine contained minerals like iron, gold, and even diamond. He had taken some when he found the mine, but since then, it had been raided many times.

It got hot up there in the summer, partially thanks to the desert. With no option, the swordmaster took off his shirt, taking a moment to stretch. Years of fighting and hardening himself had led him to have great stamina, but not in the way that his wife wanted. He balled up the partially-wet shirt and used it as a towel to wipe the sweat that the sun hadn't evaporated yet.

"Deserno!" A soft voice called from the house's back porch.

The swordmaster turned to look at her, placing the bottom palm of his right hand on his hip, slinging his shirt over his shoulder. "This is boring. I need to train."

"That's not what I yelled about." Amber stepped outside, starting down the steps of the porch stairs. "Your son wandered off somewhere in the town. Go find him." She walked up to him, grabbing the tool. "I'll finish up for you." She smiled, trying hard not to look at the well-chiseled features of his topless figure.

"Alright, sure." He broke for the idea as soon as she said she'd finish up planting things. "Just let me get a shirt on." He handed her his already-wet shirt and walked up the steps and back inside. Cool, fresh air hit him in the face like an iceberg, making him slightly shiver from such a temperature change. After that, he pulled on one of the old shirts that Amber had gotten for him a while back and went to the front door, but not before grabbing his iron sword, just in case something happened. His diamond one wouldn't be needed.

He opened the door and stepped outside, the cold turning back to its searing heat. He closed the door behind him and walked up to one of the various thick strings that kept a large envelope in place. It was keeping a small island suspended, as they always did throughout town, but this particular one had rope running all the way down to the ground, and attached to it was a small harness. It was how he got down to the town quickly if he needed to.

Feeling a bit reckless, he took one of the various hooks off of the fence outside the house and clicked it into the harness. He put one glove on, to keep his hands from getting rope burn, and with a faithful jump, he slid all the way down the length of the rope, feeling the hot wind run through his hair. As soon as he started, it was over.

He hit the grass with a muffled thud, the dirt patch under his feet showing that he had used this method many times. He unclipped his belt, looking around.

His son was, as he guessed it, by the thick tree that shaded a small pool of water. He was holding something in his hand, and he was attracting a few people.

As Deserno got closer to him, he noticed that he was holding a strong yet slender stick and whacking it against the tree.

Phrases such as "Take that!" and "Hyah!" were being yelled from the small child's mouth. For one, he was trying to mimic his father's training. He thought that swords were awesome tools used to save people. In the kid's imagination, he was on top of a large hill, fighting off an evil-doer who also had a sword.

Thinking to knock the kid into attention, Deserno unsheathed his sword from his back and turned it around ninety degrees on the handle. Aiming from a ways away, he threw the sword with great accuracy towards the tree.

It hit its mark soon after, piercing the tree half way through. The kid almost jumped out of his skin, stumbling backwards and, tripping over the tree's root, fell flat on his back. After looking confused for a second, he took the stick and stuck it between his arm and upper chest, pretending to be stabbed. He grunted in pretend pain.

"Someday I'll get you!" He said before pretending to pass out on the ground, his spiky hair falling around his face in a sleepy halo. He slightly shook again as Deserno prodded the boy in the side of his chest with his boot.

"What, did you defeat him?" He chuckled. helping the small boy up.

He put on a frown. "No, dad, he got away again, but I swear he won't next time!" He picked up the stick again and raised it high over his head, taking a heroic stance. "By the power of Taka, I will beat him!"

Deserno couldn't help but break a laugh. It was rare that the child made him laugh like this. However, it wasn't just a laugh because it was funny. He saw the development. The child was learning how to wield a sword...and quicker than Deserno had planned.

"Alright, come on now, 'Taka the Hero.'" He helped the child up onto his back, the child holding onto his neck. "Heroes need to rest too, 'ya know."  
"Like you dad!" Taka beamed. He tried to do his father's voice while imitating a battle he had told him about. "Take this you dragon!" He swished the stick back and forth and then pretended to do his best dragon imitation. "Hyah!" He poked the stick forward and pretended then to be the dragon again, this time doing his best death rattle, and then holding the stick up again in victory before pretending to pass out.

Deserno couldn't help but notice how well the child reenacted the story of him and the battle with the dragon. The breed was a Zigged Horntail, one of the most deadly of all the breeds, even more so than the Ender Dragon, a breed said to exist in a place that no one has found yet, so it's mostly passed off as a myth. It had ravaged a town and Deserno and his group had gone to defeat it, but he ended up saving one of his fighter's life by taking an attack and then stabbing the creature through the heart before passing out from exhaustion and blood loss.

"I wonder what's for dinner?" Taka said after holding the position for a few seconds. "I'm hungry from almost beating my rival!" He spoke, smacking his lips.

"Well, let's go see, shall we?" He looked back to him, and the kid nodded before yelling, "Charge!" and at the word, the twosome took off the down the street, heading towards home.

* * *

Taka gave a weary yawn as he stretched, sitting down on his bed, his cloth sheets covering his legs up to his abdomen. He laid down in his bed, pulling the covers up and over his chest, bringing them up to his lower neck.

"Dad!" He called down the hallway. He waited for a bit for him to arrive in his room. Both him and Deserno knew what he wanted.

In slight annoyance masked by amusement, Deserno entered the room. "I have no more stories for you." He gave a smile.

"B-but, dad's a hero!" Taka extended his arms up while he was still laying down. "Don't you have one story? Please?" He looked to Deserno, giving him the cutest look he could pull.

Deserno tried to block it out, but after a bit, he gave a defeated sigh. He was becoming a bit too soft for his tastes "Alright, alright, but this is a short story."

Taka didn't say anything, but the look on his face, an excited smile with burning determination in his eyes, showed his joy in listening to another one of his father's amazing stories.

Deserno leaned against the wall, placing a foot against it. "It all started..." He stroked his stubble in thought, "When I was aboard the strongest airship in the land, _King._" He gave a thoughtful look, "I was...I think I was under the deck, that is the-"

"I know what a deck is, dad..." Taka looked to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Alright then." Deserno continued after a pause, "Well, one of the workers on the ship ran down below deck and told us that bad people had come aboard the ship, and wanted to steal the items we had aboard, like diamonds and iron."

Taka didn't say anything, but he had sat back up in his bed, excitement ringing in his eyes.

"As quick as I could, I ran up to the top level of the ship, just in time to see the main guy on the ship get beat and then they knocked him out. As quick as I could, I took my diamond sword in my hand and fought with him, only to be hurt on the shoulder, but then I was able to get back and win the sword fight!"

"Yeah!" Taka pumped both fists in the air.  
"I beat him and saved the whole ship; and it wasn't easy either, but they thanked me for saving the whole airship." Deserno finished his story, much to Taka's disappointment, but then Deserno walked closer to him, wishing him good night and patting him on the forehead. After that, he blew out the sole candle in the room, leaving it dark, save the moonlight bleeding in from the cover of the window.

Taka was excited. Too excited. He felt as if he couldn't go to sleep.

_Wow..._he thought to himself. _That was incredible! I wanna do that when I grow up_. He laid back down in bed, turning until he found a good position to sleep in. _I wanna...do...do..._his eyes fluttered, _Do that when I grow up..._

And with that, and the moon's white glow bathing the room in dim light, Taka slowly but surely fell to sleep, falling within the reaches of his dream.

* * *

_Taka slowly opened his eyes to reveal him standing in...darkness. Complete darkness as far as he could see. The darkness seeped into any cracks of light, making the entire area feel like a coffin, or a cage which no one, not even light could escape from. The darkness was so intense, it felt as if it was a living thing, and it was twisting and writing all around the small boy, which made him feel all the more nervous._

_As a child would react in this situation, he felt small and scared. He heard muffled noises throughout the place, like moans from someone being in immense pain, and as he walked, it felt like snow crunching under his feet, but as he stooped down to touch the floor, it felt like solid ground. He began to walk slowly, still hearing a muffled voice. He tried to hear it, but it was distant. Even though it felt like he was walking through a thick substance, he began to pick up speed as he could through the darkness, hearing the voice get closer._

_Taka squinted his eyes, and as he did so, he swore he could make out a shape. The shape of a figure._

_He tried to call out to this figure, but he could produce no words, even as hard as he tried. _

_It was then that the darkness made its move. It began to chase the child, and, as Taka noticed this, he began to run as fast as he could through the dark, but it wasn't enough, since the shadows had finally reached him with ease._

_In desperation, he reached out his right arm , trying to grab onto anything he could feel; anything that his tiny hands could grasp._

_As he thought the darkness had captured him, bringing him down to the lowest depths of where it spawned from, something grabbed his hand. He gasped silently in shock at he felt the force dissipate from the blackness and pull him forward out of tar-like dark._

_Taka collapsed as he hit the crunchy ground, but as he looked up, he saw the figure._

_He couldn't make out any facial expressions, for he wore a black trench coat that extended all the way down to his feet, and a hood covered his face. He also wore black gloves and black shoes._

_Taka again tried to question anything his mind could try to grasp at, but no sound came out._

_~I know you are confused.~_

_Taka gasped in surprise as he heard a voice speak in the back of his mind. He looked back up to the figure to see him get down on both knees and at the same height as the child._

_~Do not be.~_

_The figure placed a hand on his shoulder._

_~You are important to the world.~_

_Taka brushed his hand away, scooting back a bit. He shook his head, gripping it hard. He didn't want to be here, all alone. He wanted somebody to be with him. Doing the only thing thing he could think to do, he began to silently cry._

_But then, again, he felt the hand gently rest on his shoulder._

_~I can help you.~_

_The boy looked to him, fresh, silent tears streaming down his face._

_~Only if you do what I say.~_

_The boy, having no other option, shook his head yes._

_The figure gave him a silent look before standing up again and, focusing, he stretched his arms out before bringing them together, forming, between his hands, the figure of a wooden blade. He pulled a sheathe out of thin air too. The blade floated a bit in between his hands before resting on both of his palms._

_~Take these and defend yourself. Learn the ways of the sword.~_

_Taka looked up to the sword with wide eyes, and after a moment of rubbing them, he slowly but surely stood up, taking a chance to look at the sword. After a while, he took the sword in his hands and pulled it away from the stranger. He looked closely at it before putting it over his back, clipping the sash together. He looked back to the stranger with the same solemn expression._

_~You look...heroic.~_

_Taka was taken aback by this statement, figuring that the stranger was going to kill him or trap him in darkness, but as he realized that this was truly not the case, slowly, his face cracked a small and barely noticeable smile, leading the stranger to place a hand on the boy's shoulder again._

_~And...just so you know...my name is Ralph~_

_Taka gave him a quizzical look before the figure disappeared out of thin air, and Taka then felt like he was being pulled away from the dream._

* * *

Taka awoke with a shout. His heart was beating so hard, he could almost hear an echo of it in the still room. He placed his hand on his face in relief, while letting out a pitiful sigh. His face was covered in sweat and tears.

He sat up in his bed, realizing that it was still partially dark outside, but the sun was just beginning to hit the skyline, meaning it was dawn, just about.

Taka shook his head to shoo away any bad thoughts left from the faint memory of his dreamscape. More silent tears came as he tried then to remember it, only for it to escape from his mind like mist running through his fingers.

He got out of bed, trying to move quietly as to not wake up or disturb his parents. Since it was still dark and his young eyes were not adapt to it, he had trouble moving around and, eventually, he tripped over on something hard, hitting the ground as softly as possible.

He rubbed his head in pain, tears welling up again, but as he reached for his curtain and pulled it back, he looked to the object he tripped over and gasped in both pain and complete shock.

There it sat. In its leather sheath. The wooden sword that, as Taka referred to to him, "The Wizard", had given to him in the dream.

"But...but how...?" Taka whispered in complete bewilderment. He reached for the sheath and was able to wrap his fingers around it, so it couldn't be a mirage. He took his other hand and gripped the hilt, pulling the wooden blade out.

It was real. Real as far as the child could see.

"So then...this means..." His expression went for a look of shock to a look of joyful realization, "I have a sword now!" He raised it up high, but he then realized that both his parents were asleep, so, after wincing, he lowered the sword and placed it silently back in its place.

_Hmm..._he thought to himself, _I think it's still very early..._he looked out the window to see that the sun had travelled farther in the time he had been thinking, and its beams of bright light were just beginning to show, turning the dew covered grass into a sparkling display.

_No no...I want to get used to it._ He took the sheath and placed it over his head and onto his back, snapping the buckle into place across his lower to upper chest. He placed both hands on the ground and pushed off, helping him get to his feet. Silently, he walked out of his room, looking left and right for anybody awake at this time, other than him of course.

Seeing nothing, he shook his head yes and began to slowly move towards the door, but he stopped dead in his tracks as he heard something. In the back of his mind, some voice spoke to him.

_~Don't use that door...~_

Taka gasped quietly and looked around, but he saw no one that could tell him that. Being persistent as he was, though, the seven-year old tried to think of any other place where he could get outside. The front door was past his parent's room, and he didn't want to risk waking them up. The back door was out of the question too.

At last he had an idea. His bedroom window! It had a pathway that led around the front of the house which, ultimately, led down into the city.

Turning around, he silently crept back to his room, making sure to close the door all the way. Since he knew the early fall mornings were cold, he quickly put on a long shirt and his training pants, and, after adjusting his sword, he made for the window.

He unlatched the lock on it and gripped the base of the window, lifting it slowly up. It slid perfectly up with almost no noise and, slowly but surely, the kid stuck one foot out, and then the other, and then he slid his whole body out the window, hitting the grass pathway with a muffled _thud._

He turned around and closed the window behind him slowly. After all of that, he took a step back and breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he successfully escaped. He gave a smile and followed the path all the way to the front of the house. Once he was sure he could not be heard, he gave a shake of his head and, taking off, he ran down the pathway and down the steps of the house, going to his training area.

He passed some houses on his way, only one of them having an open curtain in the upper window. He didn't really see any movement, so he continued on his way down the path and, finally he reached the main part of town. Taking a right past the job sign, he came to his training area.

It was a small outcropping of grass with a shallow, small lake. A tree, which he trained on, had grown in the last forty years, so it covered the entire area. It was peaceful and quiet, just what Taka wanted.

He stepped over to the tree. placing his right hand against it. He closed his eyes and, slowly, he slipped into his own imagination.

In his mind, he was atop the mountain again, and below him was a vast desert as far as the eye could see. Reaching up, he pretended to adjust a headband around his head and then, finally, he opened his eyes.

In real life, he was looking at the tree, but in his mind, he saw his rival, standing before him. He wore a black cloak and, in his hand, was a sinister blade, the metal made out of obsidian.

_Back again? _He heard a voice speak in his head. _This time, I will win_.

"Not today!" Taka shouted. He pulled his wooden sword out, holding it up to the sky, and, in his imagination, it shone light all around him.

In quick blows supported by his imperfect stance he had been practicing, he began to hack and slash at the tree, performing horizontal strikes, vertical strikes, and even a few special ones of his own.

In his imagination, finally, he was gaining the upper hand. His opponent could do nothing but try to dodge Taka's blows, but, finally, Taka gave a wide slash, cutting his chest open. His opponent gave a death rattle and, tripping, fell off the mountain, giving a shout as he fell down into the depths below.

Taka gave a smirk and held his sword up high again as he struck a victory pose, but as he opened his eyes again, surprise struck him like a train.

The tree, which he was previously unable to pierce with his stick, showed gashes from where he had slashed. There were many of them, but none so much as a very deep one, which happened when he gave his last slash.

Taka was amazed. In _no_ world should a sword made out of wood be able to create marks against a tree, since both were of the same material. This led him to believe that the sword he possessed was not wooden, but it was steel. He lifted up the sword, eyeing it up and down.

No, it was definitely made of wood. _But since it came from that wizard..._he thought, referring to the magical guy from his dreams, _Maybe...just maybe..._he lifted the sword up again, getting a closer look.

"Maybe it _looks_ like a wooden sword...but it _fights_ like a steel one?" He questioned to no one. Taking it in his hands again, he gripped it in his hands and brought the blade down, cutting against the rough bark of the tree and, sure enough, he was able to create another slash in it.

"Awesome!" He shouted in slight victory mixed with amazement, but then he realized that, although he had a "sort of" real sword right now, he was also outside before hours.

He gasped, remembering how pissed mom would be if he wasn't at home when she woke up. Quickly, he sheathed the sword back in its place on his back and, as soon as he could, he took off down the stone brick pathway, and then, at the four way intersection, he hung a right and, going up the stairs, he finally made it back home.

He snuck against the fence of the home, which was more like a oriental wall with decorative curvatures coming up and down upon the top, which made the perfect hiding spot.

Thinking he was safe, he gave a rapid glance around the wall and saw that the coast was clear, but he didn't trust it, so he hid behind the wall again, taking a deep but quiet breathe.

He was waiting for someone to come outside, but considering the fact that the full body of the yellow sun had just been revealed in the skyline, only certain people throughout the massive city would be awake.

Holding his breath, he glanced around the wall again, and, from genetic instinct, kept one hand on the hilt of his sword in case someone tried to get behind him.

Seeing nothing, he got up and bolted quietly for the side pathway that led to the window of his bedroom. As he ran, he was careful not to kick up and dirt or dust again the already dusty pathway.

He made it to his bedroom window and came to a halt, gripping the dusty window sill. As he was about to open it, he gasped in both shock and minor pain as something poked his shoulder.

Fearing the worse, he slowly turned his head to the left to see, as his fears confirmed, a silver blade, the brilliant colors of the sun shining off of the polished metal.

Taka winced and closed his eyes for a brief moment, and then he slowly but surely turned his head upwards.

There he was. Sitting there. He had one sword in his hand, the direction of the hilt forcing the blade to point downwards. He had both legs tucked up and was resting his head on his knees, trying not to fall asleep from boredom, and doing a very good job at it, too.

Taka took a deep breath to relax his frightened nerves and looked down at his feet in utter shame. "Uh..." He stammered, "Hey...dad." He released the grip on his blade's hilt, letting his arm droop at his side.  
Deserno took his sword off his son's shoulder, turning it ninety degrees on its axis and placing it back into its well-crafted hilt without stopping. He then hopped off of the spot on his room, landing firmly on the ground. He lowered his head to look at his son with mixed emotions. The way he glared at him meant that he wanted an explanation. _Now._

"Dad...I mean...you got to understand!" Taka raised his arms forward with palms out, pointing them at an angle. "I was...I was in this dream, and then it was really dark, and then this guy came and gave me this sword-" he pointed to the sheath against his back, "And then it came to life, and I went to train with it..." He took a deep breath, "And then it turned out that it _looked_ wooden but it _fought_ like a steel one!" He took a few gasps of breath, calming himself down. He forced himself to shift his eyes to look up at his father, who looked at him with a glare that said he was both confused and didn't believe him.

"The sword's iron?" He simply asked.

"No, I mean yes...I mean, gah!" He threw his arms up in frustration. Without another word, he took his arm back and pulled the wooden figure of a blade out of his sheath, showing it to his father.

"So it's wooden?" His father asked again.

"Yes, it looks wooden but...watch." Taka tried to explain. Taking the sword in his hands, he faced the fence-wall and, gripping the blade harder, he slashed once on a diagonal up to down, and, just as it did before, it left a thin gash across the stone.

"See? It's steel when it fights." Taka finally said, handing his father the sword from the hilt, but, after looking at it up and down, he pushed it away from him.

"Tell me, Taka," Deserno surprised his son when he used his name, "What was..." He swished his hand around, trying to figure out the right words, "The guy's name who gave you the blade?"

Taka put a thoughtful look on his face, obviously trying to delve into the deepest parts of his memory. Although he could not remember the dream at all, he remembered, as he referred to him, The Wizard's name.

"I think his name was..." Taka scratched his head in deep thought, "Erm...it started with an r...Raph?"  
There it flashed. A look of both shock and interest in Deserno's eyes, but it was only for a second. Taka wasn't trained enough to notice it, but when his father spoke, he knew straight away that it was a familiar name.

"Ralph." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"Yes!" Taka shook his head, "That was him!" He cocked his head to the side, "Dad...do you...know him?"

"I do." Deserno didn't answer straight away. He was busy. Busy thinking in his mind. "He was...a friend of mine. He went to find something," He rubbed the back of his head in confusion, "Never came back."

"Where did he go?" Taka asked in his confusion.

"No one really knows." Deserno wasn't really in to the conversation, and anyone who knew him probably couldn't blame him. Since he and Ralph were good friends way back when, it just felt...ominous to him that Ralph would pop up a year later after sending that mysterious letter. What did he want with Taka? It was all foreign to Deserno.

"Well..." Taka tried to be chill about the whole thing, "I've had my training, so...I'm gonna head back inside and-" Taka was rudely halted by his father, who promptly held up a hand to silence his son.

"No, no," Deserno cast his glance to him, making the child feel all the more outranked by his father, "We need to talk."


End file.
